[EL] ELB News and Commentary 2/2/19

Sat Feb 2 09:48:02 PST 2019

“Civil rights group sues Texas over order to investigate potential noncitizen voters with flawed data”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103449>
Posted on February 2, 2019 9:24 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103449> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Dallas Morning News:<https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2019/02/02/civil-rights-group-sues-texas-order-investigate-thousands-potential-non-citizen-voters-flawed-data?utm_content=bufferfd6b6&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer>

A civil rights group has sued the state of Texas for advising counties to review the citizenship of tens of thousands of eligible voters in the state with flawed data, claiming it violates the voting rights of U.S. citizens and legally registered Texas voters who are foreign-born.

The lawsuit filed by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund alleges that the state has “singled out for investigation and removal” the names of U.S. citizens who are registered voters because they were born outside the United States. It asks for an injunction to prevent recently naturalized citizens from being investigated and a rescission of the state’s advisory to comb through a list of 58,000 people state officials said had potentially voted while not citizens.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103449&title=%E2%80%9CCivil%20rights%20group%20sues%20Texas%20over%20order%20to%20investigate%20potential%20noncitizen%20voters%20with%20flawed%20data%E2%80%9D>
Posted in The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

“Democratic Presidential Hopefuls Compete To Spurn Establishment Cash”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103447>
Posted on February 2, 2019 9:19 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103447> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Peter Overby<https://www.npr.org/2019/02/02/690156001/democratic-presidential-hopefuls-compete-to-spurn-establishment-cash?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20190202> for NPR:

As Sens. Elizabeth Warren<https://www.npr.org/2018/12/31/677821948/elizabeth-warren-launches-exploratory-bid-for-president-in-2020>, Kamala Harris<https://www.npr.org/2019/01/21/677834764/sen-kamala-harris-announces-2020-presidential-candidacy> and Kirsten Gillibrand<https://www.npr.org/2019/01/15/678292493/new-york-sen-kirsten-gillibrand-announces-2020-presidential-run> jumped into the Democratic presidential nomination contest, they staked out the same position against corporate campaign cash.

“The money in politics is corrupting. It controls everything,” Gillibrand told a gathering in Des Moines, Iowa, last month. “You’ve got to take on the whole system, and you have to get money out of politics. And that’s why, as a very small first step, I’m not taking corporate PAC money.”

Small as it is, this pledge to reject corporate PAC money has become a cornerstone of the Democrats’ primary contest. It helped Harris to raise $1.5 million online from small donors in the 24 hours after she announced. Warren’s campaign didn’t release a total for the post-announcement surge, but she said she got contributions from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103447&title=%E2%80%9CDemocratic%20Presidential%20Hopefuls%20Compete%20To%20Spurn%20Establishment%20Cash%E2%80%9D>
Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, campaigns<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>

“Court rejects settlement in Michigan gerrymandering suit”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103445>
Posted on February 2, 2019 9:17 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103445> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Detroit News:<https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2019/02/01/michigan-gerrymandering-settlement-rejected-trial/2748495002/>

A lawsuit alleging partisan gerrymandering by Michigan’s Republican-led Legislature is heading toward trial next week after a three-judge panel rejected a settlement proposed by Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and plaintiffs.

Benson does not have the authority to enter into the proposed consent decree without the blessing of the Michigan Legislature, the federal judges said Friday in a ruling rejecting the deal, which would have required reconfiguration of at least 11 state House seats for 2020 elections.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103445&title=%E2%80%9CCourt%20rejects%20settlement%20in%20Michigan%20gerrymandering%20suit%E2%80%9D>
Posted in redistricting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>

“Botched election for Georgia House must be redone yet again”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103443>
Posted on February 1, 2019 4:09 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103443> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

AJC<https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/botched-election-for-georgia-house-must-redone-yet-again/bFrQtU59wLCTSvXL8UM68J/>:

A judge on Friday ordered a rare second do-over election for a northeast Georgia House seat, finding that four voters didn’t live in the district, throwing its outcome into doubt.

The new election means that voters will return to the polls<https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/defeated-georgia-legislator-alleges-voters-were-given-wrong-ballots/BibShsRdB5O3kYZQ8PZ52O/> for a third time to decide between Republicans Dan Gasaway and Chris Erwin.
Erwin appeared to win<https://www.ajc.com/blog/politics/georgia-house-election-over-separated-just-two-votes/DKecF1f6dzulYMEWvXyjAK/> the first redo of the election in December by just two votes, but Senior Superior Court Judge David Sweat decided Friday that four voters had moved out of House District 28 more than 30 days before the election. Because the election was so close, the judge found that four votes were enough to justify a new election.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103443&title=%E2%80%9CBotched%20election%20for%20Georgia%20House%20must%20be%20redone%20yet%20again%E2%80%9D>
Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, recounts<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=50>

“Mueller Could Have More Than Russia on His Mind: There were foreign nationals from many countries surrounding the Trump campaign, argues Brennan Center fellow Ciara Torres-Spelliscy.<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103441>
Posted on February 1, 2019 3:51 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103441> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Interesting<http://www.brennancenter.org/blog/mueller-could-have-more-russia-his-mind>.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103441&title=%E2%80%9CMueller%20Could%20Have%20More%20Than%20Russia%20on%20His%20Mind%3A%20There%20were%20foreign%20nationals%20from%20many%20countries%20surrounding%20the%20Trump%20campaign%2C%20argues%20Brennan%20Center%20fellow%20Ciara%20Torres-Spelliscy.>
Posted in campaigns<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>, chicanery<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>

“To Fight Democrats’ First Bill, GOP Calls in Discredited Advocates of Voter Suppression”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103439>
Posted on February 1, 2019 3:50 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103439> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Ari Berman reports<https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/01/to-fight-democrats-first-bill-gop-calls-in-discredited-advocates-of-voter-suppression/> for Mother Jones.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103439&title=%E2%80%9CTo%20Fight%20Democrats%E2%80%99%20First%20Bill%2C%20GOP%20Calls%20in%20Discredited%20Advocates%20of%20Voter%20Suppression%E2%80%9D>
Posted in fraudulent fraud squad<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=8>, The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

“Raskin Introduces ‘Shareholders United’ Bill to End Corporate Political Spending without Shareholder Consent”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103437>
Posted on February 1, 2019 1:27 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103437> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Release<https://raskin.house.gov/media/press-releases/raskin-introduces-shareholders-united-bill-end-corporate-political-spending>:

Today, Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08) introduced the Shareholders United Act, H.R. 936<https://raskin.house.gov/sites/raskin.house.gov/files/Shareholders%20United.pdf>, to control billions of dollars in corporate political spending and put power back in the hands of the shareholders.
The Shareholders United Act would prevent corporate expenditures for campaign purposes unless the corporation has established a process for determining the political will of its majority shareholders.

If a corporation has no such process or is unable to assess the “majority will” of shareholders because the majority of shares are owned by entities that are prohibited from registering a political preference – such as states and cities, pension and mutual funds, universities, charities, or foundations – then the corporation will be prohibited from using its resources on political campaigns.

The majority of shares of Fortune 500 companies are actually owned by institutional investors prevented from engaging in partisan political activity because of federal or local law, their tax status, contract, or fiduciary duty.

“If most company shares are owned by entities forbidden to be involved in politics, the CEO literally has no one to speak for,” Raskin said. “Money should not be taken from shareholders and their owners to make political statements they are prevented by law from making.”
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103437&title=%E2%80%9CRaskin%20Introduces%20%E2%80%98Shareholders%20United%E2%80%99%20Bill%20to%20End%20Corporate%20Political%20Spending%20without%20Shareholder%20Consent%E2%80%9D>
Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>

“Judge: Kansas’ Largest County Violated Law By Not Specifying Rejected Ballots”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103435>
Posted on February 1, 2019 10:01 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103435> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

AP<https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/judge-ruling-kansas-largest-county-must-specify-rejected-provisional-ballots>:

A judge has ruled that election officials in Kansas’ largest county violated open records law by refusing to provide names of hundreds of people whose provisional ballots were not counted in last August’s primary.

Davis Hammet, president of Loud Light, asked for the names of 898 people whose ballots were thrown out and for justification on why they didn’t count. Johnson County election commissioner Ronnie Metsker rejected Hammet’s request, prompting the American Civil Liberties Union to join Hammet in a lawsuit<https://apnews.com/4f34bddad7da431994db7fa9b2f62311>.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103435&title=%E2%80%9CJudge%3A%20Kansas%E2%80%99%20Largest%20County%20Violated%20Law%20By%20Not%20Specifying%20Rejected%20Ballots%E2%80%9D>
Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

ProPublica and Lexington Herald-Leader Publish Third of 3 Devastating Articles on Kentucky Secretary of State Grimes<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103433>
Posted on February 1, 2019 9:40 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103433> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

The Curious Case of a Kentucky Cybersecurity Contract<https://www.propublica.org/article/the-curious-case-of-a-kentucky-cybersecurity-contract>:

In the months after the 2016 elections, state election administrators spent millions of dollars investigating and addressing the cyber intrusions that had penetrated voting systems in dozens of states. Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes emerged as one of the loudest voices calling for improvements.

In February 2017, at an elections conference dominated by talk of cybersecurity, Grimes claimed to have found the perfect answer to the threat: A small company called CyberScout, which she said would comb through Kentucky’s voting systems, identify its vulnerabilities to hacking and propose solutions.

Three days later, Assistant Secretary of State Lindsay Hughes Thurston submitted paperwork<https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5717040-Sole-Source-Letter.html> to give the company a no-bid two-year contract with the State Board of Elections, or SBE, for $150,000 a year. She did not inform the SBE — the agency that oversees the state’s voting systems — that she was doing so.

At the time, CyberScout was new to voting-related cybersecurity. The company acknowledges that it had never had an election-systems client before.

CyberScout’s CEO and his wife had given Grimes a total of $12,400 in contributions over several elections, along with $4,000 to state Democratic groups. (All of the donations fell within state limits.) Ultimately, the contract went through — Grimes denies the contributions had any influence — and CyberScout delivered little in the way of results, according to 15 election officials interviewed for this article. CyberScout’s contract was not renewed after the first stage expired in June.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103433&title=ProPublica%20and%20Lexington%20Herald-Leader%20Publish%20Third%20of%203%20Devastating%20Articles%20on%20Kentucky%20Secretary%20of%20State%20Grimes>
Posted in chicanery<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>, election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“Republicans Rewrote Voting Laws for 8 Years. Now Democrats Say It’s Their Turn.”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103431>
Posted on February 1, 2019 9:22 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103431> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Michael Wines<https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/01/us/voting-rights-laws-elections.html> for the NYT.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103431&title=%E2%80%9CRepublicans%20Rewrote%20Voting%20Laws%20for%208%20Years.%20Now%20Democrats%20Say%20It%E2%80%99s%20Their%20Turn.%E2%80%9D>
Posted in The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

Today’s Must-Read from Alexa Ura: “‘Someone did not do their due diligence.’ How an attempt to review Texas’ voter rolls turned into a debacle”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103427>
Posted on February 1, 2019 9:07 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=103427> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Texas should have (and likely did) know better. Great reporting<https://www.texastribune.org/2019/02/01/texas-citizenship-voter-roll-review-how-it-turned-boondoggle/> from Alexa Ura of the Texas Tribune.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D103427&title=Today%E2%80%99s%20Must-Read%20from%20Alexa%20Ura%3A%20%E2%80%9C%E2%80%98Someone%20did%20not%20do%20their%20due%20diligence.%E2%80%99%20How%20an%20attempt%20to%20review%20Texas%E2%80%99%20voter%20rolls%20turned%20into%20a%20debacle%E2%80%9D>
Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, fraudulent fraud squad<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=8>, The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

--
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
rhasen at law.uci.edu<mailto:rhasen at law.uci.edu>
http://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/
http://electionlawblog.org<http://electionlawblog.org/>
[signature_1931964874]
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20190202/487bfa00/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.png
Type: image/png
Size: 2021 bytes
Desc: image001.png
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20190202/487bfa00/attachment.png>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image002.png
Type: image/png
Size: 25207 bytes
Desc: image002.png
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20190202/487bfa00/attachment-0001.png>